The United States will host more than 50 countries ‌on ​Wednesday for talks aimed at boosting their access to critical ‌minerals, in a bid to loosen China's grip over vital industrial inputs that has allowed it to control global supply chains.

The Trump administration says it wants to create a critical minerals trading bloc with its allies and partners.

The new stockpile plans are compared the the 50-year-old Strategic Petroleum Reserve, created in response to the 1973 Arab oil embargo.

Washington has been moving to offset what policymakers view as Chinese manipulation of prices for lithium, nickel, rare earths and other critical minerals which are vital to makin

President Donald Trump's administration is expected to unveil its grandest plan yet to rebuild supply chains of critical minerals needed for everything from jet engines to smartphones, likely through purchase agreements with partners on top of creating a $12 billion U.

President Donald Trump formally announced plans to launch a $12 billion critical minerals stockpile, in his latest effort to aid manufacturers while minimizing reliance on Chinese rare earths.

Project Vault will combine $10 billion of Export-Import Bank financing and $2 billion of private sector financing.

China whacked Trump on the head with rare earth mineral restrictions during the trade war. He's finally buying a hard hat.